We got it wrapped, round
the yard, and passed gaskets over it as snugly as possible, and were
just on deck again, when, with another loud rent, which was heard
throughout the ship, the fore-topsail, which had been double-reefed,
split in two, athwartships, just below the reef-band, from earing to
earing. Here again it was down yard, haul out reef-tackles, and lay
out upon the yard for reefing. By hauling the reef-tackles
chock-a-block, we took the strain from the other earings, and
passing the close-reef earing, and knotting the points carefully, we
succeeded in setting the sail, close-reefed.
We had but just got the rigging coiled up, and were waiting to
hear "go below the watch!" when the main royal worked loose from the
gaskets, and blew directly out to leeward, flapping, and shaking the
mast like a wand. Here was a job for somebody. The royal must come
in or be cut adrift, or the mast would be snapped short off. All the
light hands in the starboard watch were sent up, one after another,
but they could do nothing with it. At length, John, the tall
Frenchman, the head of the starboard watch, (and a better sailor never
stepped upon a deck,) sprang aloft, and, by the help of his long
arms and legs, succeeded, after a hard struggle,- the sail blowing
over the yard-arm to leeward, and the skysail blowing directly over
his head'- in smothering it, and frapping it with long pieces of
sinnet.
Pages:
366
367
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390